Ollie Watkins accused of 'provoking' trouble at the end of Aston Villa's win at Tottenham

The final whistle was followed by ugly scenes after Spurs midfielder pushed the Villa striker as he celebrated in front of the visiting support.

But Frank placed the blame for the trouble at the door of Watkins, his former Brentford player, who he believed sparked the incident by deliberately celebrating in front of Palhinha as he walked toward the crowd.

“I guess you have seen the situation,” said Frank. “It is all about keeping a cool head. The players gave everything out there.

“I think Ollie is very provoking, the way he is walking right up to Joao to celebrate with the Villa fans. He could have just walked around him.”

Palhinha had been involved in several flashpoints during the match, with the Portugal star fortunate to avoid a booking for the challenge which forced Villa’s Boubacar Kamara off after just nine minutes.

He then was yellow carded for a full-bloodied challenge on Morgan Rogers, with the latter among those players involved in the melee at the finish.

Villa boss Unai Emery attempted to play the incident down, when he said: “It’s the referees work. Of course, we respect the referees and competition. 

“We were only a little angry because Kamara was getting injured for one action with Palhinha. 

“I think the referee today did a fantastic job. Some moments that happened with some players, I think we can understand in the circumstances that happened on the pitch.”